Is 'Greenprint Denver' Plan Enough?

Denver Mayor John Hickenlooper has proposed a plan to increase sustainable development in the city, including goals such as reducing the city's greenhouse gas emissions, increasing tree cover across the city and increasing residential recycling by 50%. Hickenloooper's "Greenprint Denver" plan has set some lofty goals, but the authors of this editorial argue that these goals are too general and do not address the true roots of many environmental problems facing Denver.

"The Greenprint plan is long on feel-good measures like green city vehicles and planting new trees, but it's a little less clear about the hard business of changing the law that governs Denver's built environment to make the city less a source of pollution, less a consumer of scarce resources and a healthier place for residents."

"For Denver's initiative to be more than symbolic, Greenprint will have to address Denver's contribution to regional sprawl and the environmental damage it causes."

Thanks to James Van Hemert, executive director, Rocky Mountain Land Use Institute